Strip, sit, sweat. It’s a ritual thought to have been in existence for 10,000 years or more – a hot, sweaty, (once) smoky luxury that began in the icy realms of the Nordic countries before spreading, via spas, hotels and sophisticated public bath offerings, to all corners of the world. It’s sauna – or “sawuna”, if you use the Finnish inflection, as felt-hatted, towel-swathed urbanites are wont to do – and it’s probably coming to a neighbourhood near you
Although Finnish in name and origin, early variations of “sweat houses” have been found all over the world. In Finland, the first iteration of your Sunday sweat-out was a pit dug into the ground, filled with fire-heated stones and covered with a peat hut, so water thrown on the rocks would create a dark, steamy crawl space, but historic sites have also been discovered in the UK and Ireland, with similar practices found across Mexico, North America and beyond. In Japan, before the rise of onsens, natural caves were even used for communal heat-ups. It’s clear: humans have always had a hankering for heat therapy, and our recent obsession is less a hot-new trend than a return to form.
Although Finnish in name and origin, early variations of “sweat houses” have been found all over the world. In Finland, the first iteration of your Sunday sweat-out was a pit dug into the ground, filled with fire-heated stones and covered with a peat hut, so water thrown on the rocks would create a dark, steamy crawl space, but historic sites have also been discovered in the UK and Ireland, with similar practices found across Mexico, North America and beyond. In Japan, before the rise of onsens, natural caves were even used for communal heat-ups. It’s clear: humans have always had a hankering for heat therapy, and our recent obsession is less a hot-new trend than a return to form.
Sauna-goers at Camberwell Community Sauna in London | Credit: Liz Seabrook
So, what’s changed? Where once saunas – and we’re talking specifically about saunas here, not steam rooms or hammams – were mostly tucked away inside glitzy hotel spas or private gyms, today they’re coming out into the open. A new wave of public saunas has brought the ritual back to its Nordic roots: democratic, affordable and woven into the everyday fabric of city life. And increasingly, travellers venturing out on city breaks are adding a sauna session to their itinerary alongside museums and restaurants, joining locals who swap after-work pints for post-office sweats.
In places like Zurich, communal wellness is old news. Come summer, lake-fed “seebads” in the Swiss city double as social hubs. Now, they’re increasingly adding saunas to their offering. In Helsinki, sauna culture is so ingrained you'll find hot rooms in homes, offices, the airport and even Parliament. But for cities without that heritage, the sauna’s rise is opening up a new kind of gathering space that’s one part ritual, one part social experiment: the community sauna.
Take the UK. The British Sauna Society reckons the number of Finnish-style public saunas nearly doubled in the country between 2023 and 2024, with high-design hot houses landing everywhere from the Liverpool docks to Brighton’s pebbled beach – and seemingly rivalling pubs in their popularity as socialising spots. London, formerly a sauna desert, now has steamy huts dotted across the tube map: ambient, edgy spots in Peckham; ultra-luxe infrared cabins in Marylebone, rooftop spots out east; and rustic builds in Hackney, Stratford, Camberwell and Walthamstow. This ancient practice is being reimagined in modern cities globally – proving that, sometimes, the hottest new trend is also the oldest one we’ve got.
So, what’s changed? Where once saunas – and we’re talking specifically about saunas here, not steam rooms or hammams – were mostly tucked away inside glitzy hotel spas or private gyms, today they’re coming out into the open. A new wave of public saunas has brought the ritual back to its Nordic roots: democratic, affordable and woven into the everyday fabric of city life. And increasingly, travellers venturing out on city breaks are adding a sauna session to their itinerary alongside museums and restaurants, joining locals who swap after-work pints for post-office sweats.
In places like Zurich, communal wellness is old news. Come summer, lake-fed “seebads” in the Swiss city double as social hubs. Now, they’re increasingly adding saunas to their offering. In Helsinki, sauna culture is so ingrained you'll find hot rooms in homes, offices, the airport and even Parliament. But for cities without that heritage, the sauna’s rise is opening up a new kind of gathering space that’s one part ritual, one part social experiment: the community sauna.
Take the UK. The British Sauna Society reckons the number of Finnish-style public saunas nearly doubled in the country between 2023 and 2024, with high-design hot houses landing everywhere from the Liverpool docks to Brighton’s pebbled beach – and seemingly rivalling pubs in their popularity as socialising spots. London, formerly a sauna desert, now has steamy huts dotted across the tube map: ambient, edgy spots in Peckham; ultra-luxe infrared cabins in Marylebone, rooftop spots out east; and rustic builds in Hackney, Stratford, Camberwell and Walthamstow. This ancient practice is being reimagined in modern cities globally – proving that, sometimes, the hottest new trend is also the oldest one we’ve got.
Sauna Social Club in Peckham, London | Credit: Sophie Milligan @sophie.making.stuff
saunasocialclub.co.uk
Sauna Social Club, London, UK
Beneath a railway arch in the south-east London enclave of Peckham, this groovy wellness space grew out of the founders’ desire to create a healthy, mindful socialisation hub that didn’t require punters to sip pints when hanging out. The high-ceilinged space, which is decorated with swirling, soothing lighting, and a chill-out zone scattered with squishy floor cushions, complements the two-sauna offering – and you’ll find ice baths in the small but perfectly presented garden out back. Book a Social Sauna session during the week or opt for one of their Friday- or Saturday-night Ambient Experiences, when live DJs take to the decks as you sweat it out.saunasocialclub.co.uk
Löyly in Helsinki city centre | Credit: Visit Finland
loylyhelsinki.fi
Löyly, Helsinki, Finland
In the home country of sauna, the capital city reigns supreme when it comes to design-forward public saunas offering stylised socialisation four seasons a year. These two public saunas (there’s a private one for hire, too) sit on Helsinki’s Baltic waterfront in a striking sculptural shell of slatted timber. Inside are smoke- and wood-heated saunas, with steps leading straight into the Baltic for icy dips afterwards. The restaurant, serving comfort classics like sausages and chips, salmon soup and reindeer sirloin steak, plus the terrace turn the location into a full-day hangout – mixing modern Nordic architecture with old-school sauna know-how.loylyhelsinki.fi
One of 10 floating saunas at Sukkerbiten in Oslo | Credit: Becky Zeller / Oslo Badstuforening
oslobadstuforening.no
Sukkerbiten, Oslo, Norway
Part of Oslo’s buzzing Badstuforening sauna association, Sukkerbiten is a floating cluster of sauna rafts on the city’s fjord, backdropped by the striking silhouettes of the nearby Opera House and the Munch Museum. Each of the 10 saunas has its own design: some are clad in red clapboard with diving boards for jumping into the surrounding waters; others offer floor-to-ceiling glass walls; one, even a scarlet staircase for sunbathing. Regular, year-round sauna sessions can be booked online, but there are also communal “aufguss” rituals, or naked sauna experiences (both mixed and women-only) and family sauna sessions, providing an easy entry point into Norway’s rich sauna culture. The largest hut – Trosten – is wheelchair accessible, too.oslobadstuforening.no
Wyld, Liverpool, UK
Few locals would have believed they’d one day be dipping into the Mersey-fed Liverpool docks, but Wyld has made it reality. Launched last year, this floating spa features a 30-person sauna, ice baths, cold waterfall showers and – if you’re brave enough – dock swims. Now, a second, smaller sauna, new bathrooms and an on-site café are on the way. Guests are asked to skip soap when showering and use specifically created salt scrubs instead, keeping the entire set-up eco-friendly.wyldsauna.com
Badhaus lounge, Amsterdam
The star attraction? Once heated, you can plunge straight into the river. Those not feeling so courageous can opt for the outdoor tub on the dock, the cosy lounge inside the waterfront warehouse or the second traditional Finnish sauna. Badhaus offers two-hour Social Sauna sessions, which can be booked in advance and include access to both saunas, the cold plunge, showers and lounge. For a more private escape, the saunas can also be reserved for up to 12 guests.
badhus-amsterdam.nl
Badhaus, Amsterdam, The Netherlands
In the Amsterdam-Noord neighbourhood, this floating, design-focused sauna sits on a charming dock between colourful boats – a slice of calm on the city’s industrial edge. Grab a beer from neighbouring De Ceuvel, step into the red-roofed hut, and unwind for a dreamy two-hour sweat beside a sauna window overlooking the water.The star attraction? Once heated, you can plunge straight into the river. Those not feeling so courageous can opt for the outdoor tub on the dock, the cosy lounge inside the waterfront warehouse or the second traditional Finnish sauna. Badhaus offers two-hour Social Sauna sessions, which can be booked in advance and include access to both saunas, the cold plunge, showers and lounge. For a more private escape, the saunas can also be reserved for up to 12 guests.
badhus-amsterdam.nl
Vytautas Beats The Gong, Vilnius, Lithuania
After waving goodbye to inmates for the final time in 2019, the forbidding hulk of Lukiškės Prison in Vilnius – unexpectedly – transformed into a cultural hub for the energetic Lithuanian capital. Visitors can still explore behind the high walls and barbed wire, with regular tours of the complex, but alongside the landmark’s harrowing cells and ghostly tales, the prison is now home to 250 artists and creators, as well as a bar and, in the old courtyard in winter, the igloo-shaped Vytautas Muša Gongã – a steamy, eight-person sauna equipped with sauna hats, birch whisks and mind-clearing essential oils.ivanasmusagonga.lt
The beach in front of Nallikari Restaurant in Oulu | Credit: VisitOulu
It’s technically not public, with minimum billing costing €15 per person, and a minimum billing of €300 for up to four hours in one sauna, but fear not. Oulu, which can be reached by direct flights from Helsinki, Riga and Frankfurt, is gearing up for its reign as 2026 European Capital of Culture, and the city’s sauna culture is set to take the stage, with the opening of a brand-new public sauna (the city’s first in 35 years) at Tuira beach next autumn.
ravintolanallikari.fi
Nallikari Restaurant, Oulu, Finland
Hidden at the back of a beachfront restaurant in the northerly city of Oulu (famed for tar production, Nokia and the annual World Air Guitar Championships), the gender-separated saunas at Nallikari are slick and smart. Once you’ve – in the typically Finnish tradition – finished off salmon soups and fried pike-perch in the restaurant, walk through the doors beside the bar to find two bookable, birch-lined saunas, plus changing rooms, a fridge full of complimentary drinks, an outdoor terrace and – up a metal staircase – a bird’s nest-style Jacuzzi offering sunset views across the Gulf of Bothnia. As a bonus, the locals don’t mind you pattering back through the restaurant swaddled in towels towards Nallikari beach for a wade in the peat-hued waters after a sweat session (or in winter, a snow-roll), either.It’s technically not public, with minimum billing costing €15 per person, and a minimum billing of €300 for up to four hours in one sauna, but fear not. Oulu, which can be reached by direct flights from Helsinki, Riga and Frankfurt, is gearing up for its reign as 2026 European Capital of Culture, and the city’s sauna culture is set to take the stage, with the opening of a brand-new public sauna (the city’s first in 35 years) at Tuira beach next autumn.
ravintolanallikari.fi
Camberwell Community Sauna | Credit: Liz Seabook
community-sauna.co.uk
Camberwell Community Sauna, London, UK
Launched in 2021 by a group of sauna enthusiasts keen to open up the sauna experience to people from different backgrounds, London’s Community Sauna Baths company is a not-for-profit organisation aiming to make their London-wide spa sites as affordable, inclusive and authentic as possible. Of the six sites spread across south and east London – including a just-opened Walthamstow outpost tucked into a vacant industrial plot – our favourite is the Ruskin Park site in Camberwell, which houses three saunas, two cold plunge barrels, free herbal tea, hot showers and changing facilities.The company offers free and concession pricing for NHS workers and low-income local residents, and provides women-only and FLINTA sessions throughout the week.community-sauna.co.uk
